According to him, such a move would give the wealthiest clubs total control and lead to the destruction of local leagues.
The idea of the European Super League initially came into the spotlight in April 2021, when 12 so-called giants of European football signed up for a breakway tournament. The concept aimed at setting up a new competition involving 20 clubs, with 15 permanent and five guest. The latter would be selected each season based on the results of their previous domestic seasons.
The idea had witnessed immediate backlash from fans as well as the footballing bodies across Europe, with La Liga President Javier Tebas being one of the most vocal opposers.
Out of the 12 clubs, nine, including the big six Premier League sides, issued statements of withdrawing their proposals for the European Super League in the subsequent days. The only three that remained onboard the plan were Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Juventus.
La Liga President Javier Tebas talks about how European football must be protected from the European Super League
At the conference, President Tebas targeted Real Madrid President Florentino Perez by saying:
Tebas cited Perez had previously said that the European Super League would “save football at this critical moment.” He further called this “a complete attack on European football.” Elaborating on the European football model that Tebas was trying to defend, he added:
The La Liga-sponsored event also included academics, broadcasters, European Parliament members, and representatives from clubs and fan organisations.
They were all unified in their opposition to the creation of a European Super League, arguing that it would be anti-competitive, reduce funding to grassroots organisations and smaller teams, undermine international football, and numerous other things.
The Premier League’s net expenditure in the summer of 2022 exceeded £1 billion for the first time, according to Deloitte. They also observed that English clubs were in charge of 49% of spending in the top five leagues during the window, the largest share since 2008.
Tebas questioned the viability of such expenditures and demanded that English football be subject to the same regulations as those in Spain and Germany. Expressing his concerns, Tebas said:
Further emphasizing his point, he added:
Speaking about the “ideal” European football model, Tebas said:
According to the La Liga’s rules, clubs must spend no more than their annual income during transfer windows and are not permitted to sign players if they are operating at a loss. Tebas made it clear that he wanted the English game to have comparable rules, adding that:
Speaking about the company set up to run the European Super League, the Madrid-based A22, he mentioned:
According to a La Liga report, if a European Super League were to be established, it would “destroy national leagues in the short term,” with the majority of clubs reporting a 55% decline in revenue.
The analysis, conducted for La Liga by the accounting company KPMG, claimed that Real Madrid and Barcelona, the league’s “big two” clubs, would stand to make an additional € 400 million in yearly revenue from their participation in the Super League.
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